Making It
by JemimasPen
Summary: Human AU about living in London and trying to make something of yourself. Filled with drama, friendship and trying desperately to become a performer. What could go wrong...?
1. First Meetings

**I keep having new inspiration and my last story felt like a dead end so here is a new story for you all (sorry for being so erratic). *EDITED***

CHAPTER 1

The sun peeped though the river that ran between Jemima's curtains, yellow light flooded through and swallowed the room whole. It reflected off of the small (and rather tacky) chandelier hanging from the ceiling, bounced through her eyes and danced about her mind which was clear and blank as it usually was so early in the morning. The cascading patterns dripped lazily down the wallpaper and melted away before they could splash onto the oak floorboards. Jemima reached up, one arm after the other, and stretched them out above her head until the light nibbled at her fingertips. The air was warm and bright and she could feel energy racing round the four walls. She kicked off the duvet, which seemed to have entangled its way around her torso and upper thighs, and stumbled towards the window to let the light through properly. Suddenly she was drowning in sunlight, making the air seem fuller and thicker somehow and once her eyes had adjusted to the dawn, she could make out the shapes and colours of the city that spanned before her.

The sunrise in London was either beautiful or non existent. On almost-summer days like these, the sun would glow against the buildings and streets and the large town would somehow seem bustling and she would not feel so very small and unimportant to the world. Sunlight made her feel like anything was possible, which was probably very lame and she'd obviously never say it out loud. But still, she was allowed to think it. Her room was so high up in the apartment building in which she lived (and payed an extortionate amount of rent for) that she could see the different towers' silhouettes that would loom over the metropolis. However, British weather is very rarely this friendly, and the mornings would usually begin with grey skies, drizzle and the desire to be back in bed. Jemima opened the window and various sounds of life streamed in - laughter, horns honking, construction workers doing their very best to wake up the whole neighbourhood and a very loud bus driver telling a cyclist to "get the hell out the way, arsehole!"

"Jem, get up, I made tea!" Etcetera called from the living room and Jemima smiled to herself at her friends brashness, slipping a jumper on and making her way out of her room.

Their small living room was very quaint and inviting, with pictures of Jemima and all her friends and family hanging on the teal coloured walls, a chipped old white coffee table perched in between two large dilapidated brown leather sofa's that Etcetera had found at some market last year, and countless knick knacks that were placed upon every free surface there was. The girls had a talent of collecting cute little figurines or snow globes to decorate their little apartment. Etcetera stood behind the kitchen counter that technically served as part of the living room, but the place was so cramped that everything was kind of smashed together into one place. You could wash the dishes whilst still watching TV.

"Thanks, babe." Jemima winked at Cettie as she was handed her favourite mug. Cettie cringed.

"God. You know how much I hate it when you call me that, right?" She groaned and turned back to making her breakfast of various fruits and vegetables.

"Yes, I do. And that's the exact reason I call you it, my dear." She settled down into the worn out leather sofa and traced her fingers gently over the red and gold swirls that were painted onto the white mug.

Cettie, the louder of Jemima's roommates, had blonde frizzy hair which was tied up in a knot on top of her head, a sprinkle of freckles across her nose and she was clad in her usual neon, revealing sports gear. Her small hands worked the knife carefully, while she stuck her tongue out slightly in concentration. Cettie was an early riser and a health fanatic - she gave Jemima non-stop lectures about healthy eating and the values of exercise which she gladly sat through but disregarded as soon as she saw a pizza. As long as Jemima had known her, she had been a very full on person - it was always all or nothing with Cettie, who had been through as many phases as one person possibly could. Not all of them had been good phases but now she was happier, had more energy... and killer abs. She said that crunches were her one true love. It was much better than her experimentation with excessive amounts of cheap Chardonnay that she bought in bulk from the Tesco Express down the road. Jemima felt that her friend needed to have her mind engaged by something in order to function. It was either that or she'd just explode or something.

"Vic already left?" Jemima gulped the tea down like it was the cure for cancer and crossed her legs in front of her.

Victoria, their other room mate would usually groggily wake before them both, still half asleep, in order to get to the ballet school in which she worked as an assistant teacher, disciplining children in the art of dance. She was pretty sure Victoria loved kids before she started working there but now she would get home after a long day at the studio and tell Jemima and Cettie about how snotty and whiny they all were. She would have quit by now had it not been for the fact she was allowed to practise her dancing in the studio's when they weren't being used - and it paid very well. Jemima felt as if both her friends had found their purpose and she was pretty pissed that she was yet to.

"Yep, left about half an hour ago, talking about some recital that the kids were doing - I don't know." Cettie sighed, cutting up a banana, her lisp noticeable as ever.

"Yeah, I usually start to tune out when she hits a certain level of stress," Jemima took a sip of her tea. "Only when her eyes go all wide and she gnaws at her lips do I start to actually respond in fear of her brain imploding."

"Bless her heart." The two girls chimed together.

Cettie giggled, popping a piece of watermelon in her mouth. "Do you have class today?"

"Yeah. Starts in like an hour so I should really get up but I don't feel like I'm emotionally ready yet." Jemima sighed.

Jemima had a love-hate relationship with her current degree in musical theatre at university, in which her classes took up the majority of her time. Ever since she was little she had loved performing, craving the spotlight and a chance to show off to literally whoever was there at the time to watch. Ever since she had first seen her parent's DVD of West Side Story and had earned the role of Annie in _Annie_ at age 6, all she had wanted to do was sing and dance and soak up applause from an audience completely in awe of her. She was aware her aspirations were a little self indulgent, but it's not like she had ever admitted it out loud to anyone. If anything, she was overly-humble about the whole thing. It was her goal in life to remain very nonchalant about things whilst also being amazing at them. She had yet to master that last part.

"Come on, lazy." Cettie put her hands on her hips. "Don't make me come over there."

Jemima held her hands up in surrender, her mug still in one hand. "I'm going, I'm going!" She stood slowly, her short legs peeling away from the harsh leather sofa when there was a knock at the door.

"I'll get it, you go shower." Cettie pointed accusingly at Jemima before wiping her hands on a dish towel. She bounded over to the door of their small flat and opened it.

Two tall young men stood before them. "Oh hi there." The man speaking had dark brown hair that was long enough to tuck behind his ears a lot and a friendly face, his American accent was thick and made him seem exotic to Jemima who had never left London in her life. He was noticeably tall but his looming figure wasn't intimidating. He glanced between the two before settling his gaze on Jemima, his eyes softening slightly. "Um, yeah. I'm Munkustrap. Sorry for calling in so early, but we've just moved in down the hall and wanted to, uh, say hello, I guess." The other man cleared his throat slightly. His hair was a golden blonde which looked shocking against his tanned skin and he stood just behind Munkustrap, giving a toothy grin (which was once again a shocking white in contrast). He was just as large but he stood with his hip cocked out to the side in a confident, nonchalant manner. "Oh, right. This is Rum Tum Tugger."

"But you can call me Tugger." The blonde took Cettie's hand who was still stood by the door and kissed it, smiling flirtatiously between glances at her bare midriff. Jemima stifled a laugh. The two men averted their gazes to her and she suddenly became very aware of the mickey mouse pyjama shorts she was wearing.

"I picked the right day to wear these." She laughed nervously, picking at the cotton material as she walked towards them, tea still in hand. Jemima figured that the only way to not seem embarrassed was by not being embarrassed. She was very used to making a joke out of herself in everyday situations that it was just second nature to her now. "Hey, I'm Jemima. This is Etcetera." She smiled, pointing to her friend.

"Cettie." She corrected, stretching out her hand for the men to shake. "You actually just missed our other room mate, Victoria." They looked only a few years older than Cettie and herself, but they had a certain maturity about them. Probably because they were so much taller than the two girls - even than Cettie, who would usually hover 3 or 4 inches above her. Jemima held the gaze of Munkustrap for a second longer than was usually accepted in formal situations, and she saw him blush slightly and look away. She couldn't help but notice his deep brown eyes had slight bags underneath them. This didn't, however, take away any of his beauty - the man had a well sculpted face.

"Ah, well... I'm sure we'll bump into her soon enough." Munkustrap laughed nervously. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his Yale sweatshirt and looked at the door frame like it was the most interesting thing he'd ever seen.

"I like your accent. Where abouts in America are you from?" Jemima could tell he was nervous. His ability of making conversation was abysmal and his friend was too busy winking at Cettie to notice the silence.

"Cincinnati. It's in Ohio." He cocked his head to the side.

"Oh right, yeah. Cincinnati. Sure." Jemima bluffed.

"You've never heard of it have you?" Munkustrap smiled.

"Nope." She laughed, glancing at Cettie who was waggling her eyebrows suggestively at her. She ignored her attempts to be annoying. "So are you new to the area?"

"No actually, we lived about 10 minutes away until recently but our apartment block is getting knocked down so we had to move out."

"That place was a dump." Tugger chimed in. "No wonder they're destroying it, was probably built in the 1800's."

"Bit of an exaggeration but that's kind of true. There was a lot of mould... I don't wanna talk about it." He shuddered and Tugger grimaced.

"Sounds lovely." Cettie deadpanned. She was tapping her feet incessantly and Jemima could get she was getting restless.

"Anyway. Yawn." Tugger nudged Munkustrap in the ribs. "I wanna know about this pretty blonde here." He winked at Cettie as he leaned into the door frame to get closer to her. She giggled but Jemima noticed that she took a little shift backwards.

Munkustrap, also sensing Cettie's discomfort, cleared his throat and took hold of Tugger by the shoulder. "Well, we have a lot to unpack, don't we Tugger? It was lovely meeting you both." He jerked his head in the direction of their apartment and the blonde sighed.

Tugger winked at the two girls. "I hope to see you very soon." Munkustrap smacked him on the arm with a scowl, and the blonde held his hands up in mock surrender, laughing.

"It was nice meeting you, let us know if you need anything!" Jemima called after them. Munkustrap threw one last smile over his shoulder.

As soon as the boys had walked down the narrow hallway to their own apartment and the door was closed, Cettie started gushing.

"Oh my GOD, did you see the way he was looking at you?!" Cettie was always one for the dramatics.

"The way he was looking at me? Cettie, were we talking to the same people? The blonde one was literally having eye sex with you and you looked like you were going to throw up at any second."

"I don't know, I thought he was quite good looking." Cettie shrugged, returning to her fruit station. "Plus I like knowing I'm appreciated."

"You were literally shuffling away from him bit by bit every time he started to flirt with you."

"Don't try and change the subject!" Cettie clamored, her arm outstretched towards Jemima, her hand this time wielding a knife. "You can't get out of this that easily!"

"Why are you getting so caught up in this? And put that knife down." Jemima moaned.

"Because you're my little Jemi. Plus he was hot." Cettie said and Jemima rolled her eyes. " _And_ you deserve someone new after you-know-who."

"I thought we promised not to talk about that."

"Sorry."

Jemima scoffed. "I was just trying to make conversation. And anyway, he wasn't interested, I mean I'm literally standing here in my pyjamas! I look like a child."

"He _likes_ you!" Cettie winked.

"Can I go and shower now please?" Jemima pleaded.

"Alright, I'll allow it." Cettie declared. "Have fun."

"Oh, I will." Jemima slunk away to the bathroom where she tried to clear her mind of what Cettie had said. He didn't like her. He had just met her. He didn't like her. He didn't like her. He didn't...


	2. The Part

CHAPTER 2

"No! Stop that now!" The teacher yelled as Victoria tried to gain control of the children who had just begun to fight one another over a space at the barre. "It's not nice to punch!"

Her dainty hands were no match for the hyperactive children but she somehow managed to get in between them and stop them smacking each other. Victoria rolled her eyes at Demeter, the class' teacher who rolled hers back. They both had the utmost privilege of teaching the worst behaved class at Grizabella's School of Dance. A fight would be started at least once a lesson over something so small it seemed silly but was probably the most outrageous injustice ever experienced to the group of 7-9 year olds. It was like teaching a class for juvenile delinquents.

Demeter took the two children fighting aside to talk about the importance of being polite just as the bell rung signalling the end of class. Victoria gave a sigh of audible relief as the kids started to stream out of the studio and she wiped the sweat from her forehead that had appeared not from dancing but from restraining Erin Matthews earlier in the class after Jamie Hughes had stepped on her foot.

"I swear they get worse and worse each time." Demeter groaned as she sat on the floor and began to stretch.

Victoria grunted. "God, I know. One of them actually called me a bitch because I told her that her arm wasn't fully extended. I sometimes forget that these kids are all under 10."

"Which one was it? Because I can just call their parents and they"ll be grounded for a week." She chuckled, sliding into the splits and stretching her back by leaning forwards onto the floor. "I swear I was gunna be this superstar ballerina. Now look where I am, it's pathetic. You're so lucky that you're still young and have your whole life ahead of you."

"You're not exactly an OAP, Dem." Victoria slid down next to her, leaning against the adjacent wall. "You never know what's just around the corner." Victoria hadn't meant for it to sound so sarcastic but it somehow slipped out like that. She felt just as old an bitter at 23.

"Yeah right. You turn 30 and you're no longer needed for the big parts anymore. Teaching is the best gig I'm gunna get." Demeter let her upper body fall to the floor. She was a petite woman, but had a lot of muscle and strength from the years of dancing. Her honey toned hair was tied up into a bun, with a few strands that had fallen out at the back, sticking to her neck. "Which reminds me, don't you have a lesson in like 5 minutes?"

"It's been moved to this studio so I'm just waiting here while I calm down." She rolled her neck in semi circles to de-stress. "Besides, I need to be psychologically ready before I do Bomba's class anyway. She is insane."

Demeter snickered. Bombalurina was Demeter's older sister who taught classes for adults, one being the ballet class that Victoria took with Jemima 3 times a week. She luckily didn't have to deal with the squabbles of the children Victoria taught but there were a couple of people in the class with her who were immature enough to have a mental age of 8. Her teaching method was intense tough love and in her eyes you aren't working hard enough unless your feet were bleeding which meant that no one would dare kick up a fuss like the kids did. Unless they wanted to be killed. It was exhausting but Victoria almost fed off of the motivation that came with the constant drive to work harder that Bombalurina pushed for.

"Good luck." Demeter winked as people began to walk into the studio. She stood and smiled at her sister as the redhead sauntered in, decked in a leotard that matched her hair and lips, holding a bottle of water and her pointe shoes. She was utterly beautiful in a terrifying way.

"Hey cheeky." Jemima chirped as she came to sit next to her. She always had a cringy nickname call her. Just the presence of Jemima was enough to calm Victoria down. Robed in a dark green leotard and black dancing shorts, she scraped her thick bronze coloured hair back into a bun and gave one of her famous grins that always reached her mahogany eyes. Victoria always thought that Jem had a grin that could light up a whole room - even one as drab as the studio. She had just the right amount of maturity and childishness that meant she was able to pick the perfect moment to crack a joke. "Cettie has picked a date for our party."

Cettie, Victoria's other room mate had been banging on and on about this stupid party for weeks now. She would always moan about having no social life and how the apartment was perfect for parties, despite it being incredibly cramped and full of random crap.

"Oh God, when?"

"Saturday." Jemima began to stretch out her feet. "She gave me the instructions to invite as many people as I possibly could so that applies to you also. Speaking of which..."

Jemima stood and started to walk towards a pair of boys. One was short and had charcoal coloured hair that kept falling down into his eyes. He was decked in navy tights and a large cream jumper that fell down to his thighs. The other was unbelievably tall and was dressed similarly to the other but wore a red tshirt instead. His auburn hair was cropped and he would regularly run his hands through it. Victoria giggled at how tiny Jemima looked stood next to him. She barely reached up to his shoulder.

"Hi Quaxo, hi Plato." She smiled sweetly, and Victoria groaned as she realised what she was doing. She quickly shot up and joined her friend before she had the opportunity to embarrass her. "We were wondering if you were free on Saturday night? Cettie convinced us to throw a party and we need attendee's."

"The day has finally come!" Quaxo laughed. The two boys also lived in their apartment building, a floor below with two of their friends, Pouncival and Tumblebrutus. They had been friends with the guys ever since they helped Cettie move her stuff in with her and Jemima. "Sounds thrilling, we'll be there, wont we Plato?"

"Oh, yeah definitely. Wouldn't miss it." His eyes met with Victoria's and the two blushed simultaneously. Jemima giggled and winked at Quaxo. It was no secret that Victoria had a crush on Plato. Okay, more than a crush. She had been infatuated with him ever since their first class together 3 years ago. Of course Victoria could never muster up the courage to tell him and their relationship had remained very platonic, much to her dismay.

"Alright guys, time for warm up! Everyone gather round." Bomba boomed from the other side of the room. Jemima rolled her eyes and linked arms with Victoria as the two joined the rest of the class.

Victoria's one true passion was dancing. It gave her a thrill that no other activity could compare to. All the pain, the breathlessness and the burning of her muscles felt rewarding. It was as if the more it hurt, the better she performed. She constantly strived to jump higher or extend her leg up further - she wanted to be the best that she possibly could be. That meant spending all of her time improving and whilst the others took a break between exercises, she continued to practise. She could see Jemima out of the corner of her eye laughing with Quaxo, but she couldn't join in until she had perfected her Grand Battement. She could relax when she left the studio, but until then she wanted to make the most of her time here.

"Very nice, Vic." Bomba took a sip of water and joined her at the barre. "I love your dedication. Sometimes you remind me of a blonder, skinnier me." She winked. "You should think about auditioning for the principle dancer in the upcoming show." The redhead then moved over to the group of people huddled in the centre of the room.

"Nice extension." A voice snickered behind her. Victoria spun around to face a tall and lean woman. Cassandra joined her at the barre and shot her a sarcastic smile. "Are you really going out for principle this year? Don't you think that's a little advanced for you?" She lifted her leg into an arabesque and smirked.

"I've literally only just been told about it." This wasn't entirely true. Victoria had been eyeing up the audition sign up sheet in the lobby for a few days now but hadn't gathered enough courage to put her name down.

"Good thing too, because that's my part." She said curtly.

"Yours?" Victoria questioned, wondering how on earth a part could belong to a person who hadn't even auditioned for it.

"Mine. I've been the principle dancer in the show for 4 years straight. I'm experienced. You're not. No offence of course, it's just I wouldn't want you to audition and be embarrassed. I'm only thinking of you here, honey." She moved closer to Victoria. "I would save myself the pain if I were you. You'll be disappointed."

"Alright guys, that's it for today." Bomba called out as the bell rung.

"I think I'd have a shot." Victoria spat out, shocked by the woman's harsh words. Her condescending tone was insulting and her green-brown eyes pierced her. She had never even spoken to Cassandra before. She never usually spoke to anyone other than her band of loyal followers that surrounded her every lesson. She let down her sleek chocolate coloured hair over shoulders and gave a short laugh.

"I admire your enthusiasm. But enthusiasm wont get you that part."

"What's going on here then?" Jemima swooped in next to Victoria and sent Cassandra a vacant stare. Despite Jemima being about 5 inches shorter than Cassandra, she still managed to look menacing. Victoria mentally thanked her. "I didn't realise we were back in high school. All the bitchy comments in the world wont make you a better dancer, Cass."

Cassandra rolled her eyes and stalked away. Jemima turned to Victoria. "What was that about?"

Victoria shook her head and gathered up her belongings. "It was nothing. Some squabble over a stupid part in a show."

"Hey, hey now. Look at me." Jemima took hold of Victoria's shoulders. "It's not just a stupid part in a show. It's an opportunity for you to get noticed. Do you know how many scouts come to those shows? Vic, you need to audition."

Victoria smiled at her friends enthusiasm. What was the worst that could happen? "Well, I would like to wipe that smug smile off of Cassandra's face."

Jemima laughed. "That's the spirit! Now lets go plan our little shindig!"


	3. Jealousy

**I'm sorry for such a late update! I've been on holiday and other stuff and I'm going away again in a few days so I thought I'd write this quick chapter for you all. Please forgive me for my erratic tendencies when it comes to updating stories, I promise to try and make them more regular! Enjoy!**

 **(P.s. Reviews are lovely, I reeeeeeally would like feedback, it gives me so much more motivation to write! Thank you)**

CHAPTER 3

Etcetera walked through the crowded room full of whirring machinery, laughter and heavy breathing.

"Looking good Mrs. G!" She called across to the slightly plump blonde woman on the treadmill who was sweating profusely and who sent Etcetera a grimace that she assumed was meant to be a smile.

"She's been at that for 45 minutes, it actually looks like she's in pain now." A small girl behind the gym's counter chuckled. It was rather fitting that Cettie worked in a gym - she liked to think it was her dream job as she got to lust over the hi-tech equiptment that was installed into every free space. Just the thought of a state of the art eliptical made her heart beat twice as fast (with excitement, obviously).

Cettie winked at the brunette behind the large grey counter. Electra was Cettie's closest friend and another great thing about working at the gym. They had worked there together for 2 years now and Cettie felt like she could tell her anything. She was almost as short as Jemima, with mousy brown hair, deep brown eyes, a splattering of freckles across her cheeks and nose, and a cheeky grin that she would grace certain people with when she wasn't too busy being notoriously shy. Electra wasn't a big talker and spent a lot of her time brooding over one thing or another, but the two girls were so close now that she had loosened up and now trusted Cettie enough to be herself around her.

"No pain, no gain, I suppose." Cettie shook her head. "Anyway, I've finally won over my room mates to the idea of having a party. You're expected to attend, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am." Electra saluted Cettie and winked.

"Why hello there." A familiar voice purred from behind Cettie. She rolled her eyes before plastering a smile on her face and turning around.

"Tugger! How are you?" The sickly sweet smile made her jaw ache. Tugger stood behind her, clad in small black shorts that showed off his long muscular legs and a matching running top. He flashed her a ultra white grin.

"Not too bad, sweetie. Didn't know you worked here!" He kissed her hand. "What a lovely surprise."

Electra snorted from behind the counter with her head rested on her chin, an amused look on her face. Tuggers eyes snapped to hers and she blushed and straightened up. Cettie wasn't sure how Tugger could so blatantly ignore a woman and then, upon judging her appearance, go into full on attack(or flirt)-mode.

"Hey, you didn't tell me that your friends were pretty too, Cettie. Introduce us!" Tugger's sly smile widened.

For some reason, Cettie's stomach flared up at his words. She didn't want to introduce them at all and she wasn't sure why. Her brain was muddled with contradicting feelings but she felt an orb of jealously burn in the centre of her chest.

"Uh. Tugger, this is Electra. Electra, this is Tugger." She knew she should have said more. She could have said that Electra was 23 and enjoyed French films because they make her seem intellectual, or that Tugger was the arrogant but charming neighbour of hers that liked playing rap music at 3am. But she didn't. She was afraid she might say something stupid and petty. He side stepped over to the counter and began to talk quietly to the brunette. Her face was wide with shock at his forwardness. "Anyway, much to do. See you later." Cettie tried to relieve herself from the awkward situation that was making her feel increasingly sick. And with that she smiled briefly at Electra and fled to the safety of the staff room just by the rowing machines.

Why was she so jealous? Did she like Tugger? She'd practically avoided his entire existence since he moved in, yet she'd just had to stop herself from stomping her foot and pouting like a small child. Sure, Tugger was handsome, she thought to herself. He always seemed to have perfectly styled hair -and it wasn't every day that you met a guy who was hair product-savy. But something about him made her feel uncomfortable. He emitted a sort of confidence that suggested he was of a higher status than everyone he met. She was sure guys were intimidated by him, and if her feelings were anything to go by, girls felt as if they had to succumb to his advances. She didn't want to be just another name added to his list and made a mental note to continue with her Tugger boycott. Then another popped into her mind - to tell Electra to ignore him also. She's far too good for him.

The rest of Cettie's shift was spent slinking in the corners of the gym and only speaking when someone spoke to her - which is very unlike her. It would have been calming if she hadn't been so muddled with confusion. Whenever she looked over to Tugger placing his hand on Electra's shoulder, it left a bad taste in her mouth. When the clock struck 9pm and the last person had left the gym, she packed up her things and dashed out as soon as she could.

"Cettie!" She spun on her heel at the sound of her name. Electra came running towards her, her hair shining in the evening glow. "Where have you been? You ditched me with that mad man!"

Electra's giggle relaxed Cettie slightly but something was still weighing her down. "Sorry. I just had a lot to do." This was a lie. Her day was filled with hours staring at the clock and nearly falling asleep.

"Yeah right, you just wanted to get away from that creep! I've never met a person who, one minute, can be talking about rowing machines and then suddenly change the subject to full body massages." She shuddered and shook her head.

"Not interested then?"

"Of course not!" Cettie gave a sigh of relief at her words. "You know me, I'm a lone wolf. Anyway, my bus is here so I'll see you tomorrow!"

A lone wolf, eh? She watched as her petite friend skipped towards the large double decker and smiled to herself. She had nothing to worry about. She didn't even know what she was worrying about in the first place. Electra was her friend. Her best friend. Her friendly smile was enough to reassure her that everything was fine.

As Cettie meandered her way through the quieter streets of London, she looked to the Indigo sky and sighed. Things seemed to be getting more and more confusing for her as time went by.


	4. The Black Eye

**Hey guys, it's been a while (I've just started uni and it's all been a bit hectic) but I'm back and I have loooooads of new chapters for you! Please review as they are highly appreciated! Thanks xoxo**

CHAPTER 4

"Whoa, what happened to you?"

Jem dropped her bag on the floor by her feet and frowned at the room of people in front of her. The only sound she had the energy to let out was a sigh.

"Jem!" Victoria came bounding over to her and immediately started to tuck her arm around Jemima's back and guided her towards the sofa. Pouncival shifted to allow more room for the petite girl and gave a worried look towards Victoria. That was about as far as the sympathy went as the rest of the room was in fits of giggles.

"How did you manage that?" Quaxo tried to stifle his impending fits of laughter. "You've got to stop getting into bar fights, Jem."

"Stage combat." Jemima deadpanned. She had been paired with the infamously clumsy Coricopat in her stage combat class today and everything had been going surprisingly well until they began to prepare to present to the rest of the class. Needless to say, it hadn't gone well and Jemima had received a rather gruesome black eye.

"I'll go and get some ice or something!" Victoria rushed over to the kitchen and started rummaging in the freezer. The boys began to take their focus off of Jemima and started talking about some sort of sporting event that she had no interest in whatsoever. She felt very relieved that Tumblebrutus wasn't here to see her in this embarrassing moment. Last year the two had been seeing each other and it was all fine for a while until Tumble had confessed that he still had feelings for his ex, Tantomile. Ever since then the two had been a little awkward around each other and Jemima could tell that he would have had something sarcastic to say about the purple bulge on her face.

Victoria came rushing back with a bag of frozen peas in her hand.

"Sorry, Jem. It's all we had." Jemima took the bag from Victoria and pressed it gingerly against her throbbing eye. "You know it doesn't even look that bad." She stepped back and squinted at her as if she was trying to decipher the meaning of an abstract painting.

"Thanks, Vic." She appreciated her efforts to console her but she knew she was lying.

"It actually doesn't!" Pouncival said over his shoulder.

"You aren't even looking at me!" Jem snorted.

Pouncival turned his head, remote control in hand and nodded. "Yep, you look fine." He then returned his concentration to the TV on the wall. Jemima rolled her eyes as Victoria giggled slightly at Pounce's general silliness.

"Oh and Jem? I will need those peas back at some point so that I can make dinner. The boys are staying!" Victoria sang from the kitchen area. Great, her icepack was going to be taken away and eaten by her guests. Quaxo turned to her and gave her a mischievous smile and she poked her tongue out at him in response. She was just about to get up to take a shower when the door went and with a pleading look from Victoria who had her hands full of various plates and packages, she shuffled to the door, pea's still pressed against her face.

"Hi… Oh wow, what happened?" Munkustrap stared back at her from behind the door, his form still towering over her.

It took her a moment to figure out what he was talking about, but suddenly she took the makeshift ice pack away from her face. "Oh, I had a little accident in my stage combat class today."

"You act?" He asked. Jemima was a little shocked that that was the first thing he asked instead of if she was okay.

"Uh, yeah, I do." She mumbled, wondering if he was going to show some compassion at all.

"I used to love acting! God, I wish I had continued with it all." He seemed distant for a little while before coming to his senses.

"That sucks, but you know it's never too late to start up again."

"Hmm, maybe." They shared a look for a few moments before he looked away in embarrassment again. "Um, yeah. I was just calling to ask if I could use your microwave. Tugger was meant to buy one today but he _forgot_." He held up a packaged ready meal in his hands. By this point, Victoria had bounded up behind her and, like always, became her kind self.

"Oh no, you can't eat that for dinner!"

"I can't? Why not?" He seemed genuinely confused, staring at it as if it contained some sort of ingredient that was forbidden by the British government.

"No, I mean you shouldn't have to eat that! You can stay if you'd like, we have plenty to go round and the boys are staying as it is." Victoria pointed over towards Quaxo and Pouncival on the sofas who gave a half-hearted wave, their eyes still trained on the football game on TV.

"Oh no, I couldn't." He put his hands in his pockets and shook his head a little too violently.

"It's too late, I've made up my mind! Come in! I'm Victoria by the way, Cettie told me all about you!" Victoria giggled and turned back towards the kitchen.

Munkustrap looked to Jemima and she smiled, stepping out of the way so he could get through the small door way. As he walked past her, she could smell what she could only imagine was his coconut shower gel. _Whoa, okay. Don't get too carried away, Jem, he's like 5 years older than you,_ Jemima thought to herself as she found herself inhaling a little too much.

Dinner was pretty painless as they all sat round the small rickety table and ate. Jemima had sacrificed her peas for the group and had instead replaced it with a pack of frozen fruit. They spoke about Jemima's accident and Munkustrap's love of acting.

"You seem pretty well trained! Maybe you could give me a few tips sometime." He said as they were clearing away their dishes into the sink. The others were lounging on the sofa, laughing and making jokes. Jemima smiled to the floor. Was he asking her out? _No of course not_ , Jemima thought. _Or is he?_ He had been extra sweet to her all evening, she even caught him staring at her a few times. She composed herself before looking back up.

"Sure thing. I'd be happy too." She smiled sweetly, looking him in the eye. He was incredibly hard to read. His eyes were kind but she couldn't see any signs of flirtation. She had to admit that the way the dim light was hitting the side of his face made him seem almost god-like. His jaw bone looked sharper than most of the knives the girls owned and his eyes seemed even more green than usual. She found herself staring at him, mouth slightly ajar and eyes wide, like a child seeing snow for the first time.

"You okay?" He eyed her, confused and blatantly self-conscious.

"Sorry." Her eyed snapped to the dishes in front of her, the air around them suddenly feeling thick.

"Right." He laughed awkwardly. Jemima really didn't understand this guy. One minute he's asking her for one-on-one acting lessons and then he chastises her for staring at him? "Shall we do the dishes?"

"Yeah, good idea." She mumbled, trying desperately to hide her embarrassment.

The two worked in almost silence, breaking it occasionally to ask the other to pass the sponge. Jemima couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that he no longer seemed interested in her. What had she done that was so wrong? She even tried to 'accidentally' bump into him a few times but he seemed not to notice. She was almost about to give up hope when he thanked Victoria for dinner, said his goodbye's and walked to the door.

"So… I'll see you around?" He asked as Jemima opened the door for him.

"Yeah, of course. Got to give you those acting tips, right?" She smiled at him, hoping that he would give her that warm look again that made her stomach fill with butterflies and other winged creatures. The one she received was lukewarm.

"See you!" He called as he turned to leave. Jemima bit her lip. She was getting a bit flustered. She was so sure that he had made a pass on her earlier, and she didn't want to let the moment go. She internally cringed at her desperation but decided to be brave and go with her gut.

"Hey, Munkustrap?" She called after him. He spun around to her, seeming almost happy that she had. "We're having a party on Saturday and I was wondering if you wanted to come?"

He smiled. The warm smile which made Jemima feel a bit dizzy. "Of course."

"Cool. Awesome." She grinned a little bit too much and he chuckled slightly before bowing his head and ducking into his apartment. Once Jemima was back in her own living room Victoria stared at her, an eyebrow raised.

"What?"

"You _love_ him." She teased, a grin spread on her face.

"I don't!" Jemima replied a little too quickly. "I don't." She said with a little more composure.

"If you say so." Victoria winked before going into her own room, giggling.

Frankly, Jemima wasn't sure why she had turned into a giggling school girl in front of Munkustrap. She was sure that that's what had put him off. She never usually fawned over guys, either it worked or it didn't. But something about him made her feel all giddy and nervous, as if she was experiencing her first crush again. She wasn't sure whether it was the manly air about him or the fact that they were interested in the same things, but she turned into an idiot whenever he spoke to her. She was sure this could only end badly.


	5. The Audition

**Another chapter here! Please review etc and enjoy!**

CHAPTER 5

"I feel sick. I don't want to do it."

"Oh, shut up, Vic." Jemima rolled her eyes at the blonde. "You are going to be the best here and you know it."

The girls were sitting in the largest ballet studio the school had. It was full of people – some they knew and some they didn't – all here to audition for the upcoming show. Victoria had been preparing for this non-stop for the past 3 days, practising her pirouettes in the living room and her split leaps in the hallways of her apartment building. Her small room mate was right, she was ready. But that didn't stop her mind from spinning and her stomach from churning.

"You're right. I'm just nervous." Victoria began to bit her freshly manicured nails, her nerves rising as Cassandra walked in, followed by her faithful followers.

Jemima spotted this too and yanked Victoria's hand away from her mouth. "Look at me." The blonde obeyed, her eyes full of panic. "You can do this. Don't let her phase you, that's exactly what she wants. You've _got_ this."

Victoria looked into the reassuring deep brown eyes of her friend and suddenly felt at ease. She smiled, which made Jemima smile back at her.

"I've got this." Victoria nodded and readjusted her pastel pink leotard, a sudden determination filling her.

The room became silent as the main door swung open and Grizabella strided in, her heeled boots clacking on the wooden flooring. A few people with clipboards and notepads followed behind her – probably her assistants. It was a very rare occurrence to see the school's founder. She was always busy with something or other and only really showed her face around the time of the shows. Her whole body was poised with an elegance that Victoria had never seen before, every movement she made was fluid and graceful. Despite her age, she was very beautiful, with pale skin and dark eyes, accented with precise make up. Her grey hair was twisted into a neat bun on the top of her head and she was robed in a grey jumper and black fitted trousers. She was the height of sophistication.

"Thank you all for coming to audition for this year's show." She smiled, her voice low but smooth and comforting. "I am pleased to tell you that we will be putting on a performance of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. I wish you all good luck."

She then walked to the other side of the room where the chairs were situated to watch the auditions, her slaves in tow. Victoria gulped. She had no idea that Grizabella sat in on the auditions. She looked to Jemima with wide eyes and the brunette gave her a thumbs up, winking and mouthing 'you're going to be great'.

The first half of the day was taken up with auditions for the smaller roles. Jemima went up without a shred of nervousness and danced beautifully. Victoria had always admired her bravery and willingness to do her best. She supposed that she didn't care as much because she was going out for a smaller role, but Victoria knew that she could have danced the lead if she wanted to. The hours went by in a blur, her nerves rising with every minute.

"Could we have those auditioning for Odette up next, please?" One of Grizabella's assistants called out to the room. With shaking hands and a pounding heart, Victoria rose to her feet and walked to the side of the room where the other Odette auditionee's stood. There were only a few besides her and Cassandra there, as everyone knew the lead role was only given to those who were able to dance to a high standard.

"Good luck." Cassandra mocked, her slender arms folded over her coffee coloured leotard. She really did look the part – with her chiselled face and her bewitching features. She would make a perfect Odette. But something inside of Victoria made her feel like she would too. She was just as talented and hard-working. Suddenly all the anxiousness she had been feeling turned into anger at all the times Cassandra had mocked her and made her feel small.

"You too." She looked her straight in the eye, hoping that some of her fury would come across in her face. Cassandra just rolled her eyes and made her way to the centre of the room to dance her prepared piece.

Victoria watched intensely as the tall brunette moved around the space, scoffing slightly when she looked over to her, obviously trying to put her off. Every motion was graceful and every step was precise, but something about the way she performed put her off. She was expressionless. Her face stayed stony the whole way through and the only emotion she portrayed was that of disgust. She finished her dance and looked to Grizabella, an expectant look on her face.

"Hmm." The grey haired woman frowned and looked Cassandra over. "You are very graceful, my dear. However, you do not convince me. Your face is bland, it conveys no emotion to the audience when you dance. I want to feel whatever the dancer is feeling, and frankly you seem to be feeling nothing."

Cassandra stood there, stunned. The room was silent as everyone processed what Grizabella had said to one of the best dancers in the school. Victoria tried her hardest to mask her smile but couldn't help but giggle a little as the now fuming Cassandra stalked back to her original place with the other dancers, her face red and her jaw clenched.

After a few of the others danced it was her turn. She looked to Jemima, who was sitting with Quaxo and Plato, one last time and she smiled frantically back at her. Plato winked and she blushed slightly before making her way to the centre of the room.

Victoria had always danced. It was her thing, her niche. She never really had to think about it and this was no exception. The music started and she just… danced, the adrenaline kicking in and taking over her body, as if she was standing back and watching herself manoeuvre around the space. Before she knew it, the music finished and she was in her final pose. She blinked, her heartbeat fast and her breath laboured. Her eyes darted to meet Grizabella, who said nothing but smiled and nodded at her. Victoria wasn't sure what this meant but it was a whole lot better than being publically embarrassed in front of the whole dance school.

After the auditions had ended, she ran to hug Jemima who began singing her praises.

"You were _incredible!_ " She sang, her eyes wide and full of pride. They were joined by the two boys who smiled and congratulated her on her dance. She smiled at Plato, looking up at him through her eyelashes, and he smiled back, exposing his gleaming teeth. Though the two didn't speak often, there was an undeniable connection between them.

"We should celebrate! Pub, anyone?" Jemima cried, linking her arm with Victoria's.

"Lead the way, little one." She giggled back and they left the room, laughing together. Victoria was too content to even notice that Plato didn't follow them out.


	6. 3am

**This ones a little bit shorter but I promise I'll have some longer ones up very soon! Review, review, review!**

CHAPTER 6

He wasn't even _that_ hot. Like he would be really mediocre if he didn't dress so well or if he used half the amount of hair wax. But still, he came in everyday to Cettie's work and flirted with Electra right in front of her. She was her usual shy self around her at first, but recently she'd opened up a bit as he seemed pretty persistent. Cettie couldn't wrap her mind round it. He really didn't seem her type. She wasn't sure what her type was but it certainly wasn't pretentious flirts who wore more make up than she did.

"See you, cutie." He chirped, swinging his bag over his shoulder as he sauntered out of the large glass automatic doors.

"Bye, Tugger!" She called, giggling after him. Then she turned to Cettie, sitting on the counter beside her. "Can you believe him?" She laughed. Cettie gave a half-hearted smile and focused on swinging her legs over the side of the large desk. "Earth to Cettie?"

"Sorry?" She looked up at her freckly friend who had a concerned expression plastered on her face.

"Are you alright? You've been a bit off with me lately. Have I done something wrong?"

Cettie sighed, suddenly feeling guilty that she had been neglecting her closest friend because of some guy. "You've done nothing. I – I've just been feeling a bit ill, that's all." She gave her most reassuring smile and elbowed her in the side. "I could never be mad at you."

"Good!" The brunette slid off the desk to stand in front of her. "I was beginning to think you wanted to break up!" She gave a look of mock horror and laughed. Cettie laughed too, examining her friends laugh lines that she loved so much. But something inside of her stomach dropped slightly as Electra moved off to help a customer.

It had been only last night that she had found herself sobbing into her pillow at 3am. She had no idea why, but something about the situation with Electra and Tugger made her want to punch in a wall and then cry about the fact there was a hole in her wall. She didn't know how long she'd been crying but she did know it was 3:22am exactly when her small room mate came to check on her.

Jemima had always been so sweet to her. The two hadn't known each other that well before she moved in with her and Victoria, but they had become inseparable ever since they found out they shared a love of trashy American reality shows. She had been her rock. She had been everyone's rock really, but Jemima paid special attention to Cettie when she was down because it was such a rare occurrence.

"Cettie? Are you okay?" Her mahogany eyes were wide with concern and she held a cup of tea in her hand which she offered out to her. Cettie smiled and took it gladly, sitting up to make room for Jemima's small form to sit on the bed with her. "You know you can tell me anything."

"It's… I don't know what it is. I keep getting jealous over stupid things." Cettie sighed in between sips of tea.

"What kind of things?"

Cettie stared down at the mug in her hands. It was red and gold and had a chipped rim on one side. "It's Tugger. He keeps coming into work and flirting with Electra and it makes me really mad. Don't ask me why, I have no idea."Cettie shook her head, frustrated with herself.

Jemima looked thoughtful for a moment, thinking about what she should say next. She looked at Cettie in the eye, opened her mouth and then closed it again. Finally, she spoke. "Maybe Tugger's not the one you're worried about. Electra's your closest friend. Maybe you're scared of losing her."

This resonated with Cettie and she found herself replaying these words over and over in her head as she sat on the desk, looking at her best friend helping a middle aged man on the elliptical. Maybe Jemima was right. It's not exactly as if she had any real feelings for Tugger, he was just a cocky guy from her building. In fact, he made her nervous. Just as this thought occurred, he walked back into the gym.

"Sorry, Cettie. I forgot my wallet." He purred, picking it up off the side by the rowing machines, stuffing it into his bag. He was harmless really, Cettie thought. Just a guy who's probably deeply insecure and needs female attention to survive.

"Hey, Tugger." He looked up at her. "You want to come to a little get together this Saturday?"

He smiled at her. "I heard there was a little shindig occurring. Your little roommate invited Munk the other day, I was waiting for my invite."

"Well here it is, wanna come?" She asked, trying not to gag on his cologne as he waked over and leaned against the counter casually, a hand on his hip.

"Sure thing, sweetcheeks. I wouldn't miss it." He winked and with one swift motion he was heading out the door. Cettie wasn't sure if that was a good idea but she assumed he would have crashed even if he wasn't invited. That's what Tugger was like. Always there whether you wanted him to be or not.


	7. The Almost Awkward Hand Touch

**This chapter kind of makes my heart tingle, please enjoy haha! Remember to review, yeah? ;)**

CHAPTER 7

Jemima silently cursed herself for having never lifted a weight in her life as she carried the heavy plastic bags up the narrow staircase of her apartment building. She also silently cursed the fact she lived on the top floor of a building without a lift, which meant that she had to lug half a dozen bags filled with various foods and drinks up to her flat. Her arms ached and her heartbeat was faster than she thought humanly possible. She breathed a sigh of relief as she reached the top of the last flight of stairs, dumping the bags against the wall and bending over, her bum in the air and her head between her knees to catch her breath.

"You okay there?"

Jemima snapped up, her head smacking into the wall behind her, as she stared at the man in front of her? "Fuck." Was all she could muster, as she rubbed her now throbbing head. At least there would be no visible bruising to match her eye.

"Why is it you're always getting into one scrape or another?" Munkustrap smiled down at her, his eyes lively with amusement. "Do you want me to help you with those?" He pointed to the multitude of bags at her feet. She wanted to say no. She wanted to hide away in her flat and forget about this incident altogether, but there was no way she'd be able to carry all the weight on her own with her new injury.

"Yes please. I swear I'm never usually this clumsy, I'm often prided on my ability to balance and stay upright." She gave him a sideways glance as they walked to her front door, both with bags in their hands. Luckily, the tall brunette was smiling and Jemima felt relieved that he didn't think she was a complete idiot. "You just surprised me, that's all. You should know better than to creep up on someone like that." They set the bags down on the kitchen counter once they were inside the flat and she grinned mischievously at him.

"Hey, hey, you can't blame this on me! I didn't force your head against the wall!" He pointed at her in an accusing manner, smiling broadly back. "What are these anyway?" He started to look through the bags.

"Someone's nosey." She winked as she started unloading them. He looked up and chuckled when he realised she was joking. "They're supplies for tonight. The party, remember?"

"Ah yes, Tugger has already locked himself in the bathroom to get his hair ready for tonight, he has more hair care products than most women, I'm sure."

Jemima giggled an actual girly giggle that would usually come out of Victoria's mouth when she flirted with Plato. Why was she getting so hung up over this guy? Jemima was usually the cool and confident one. Rarely did she find herself _giggling_ at something. She shuddered. What was it about him that made her want to spend all of her time with him? _Stop Jemima,_ she thought, _ask him to go._

"Want to help set up?" She asked, immediately regretting it. _What was that?_ _Idiot, idiot, idiot._ She mentally scolded herself. "I mean, that's if you don't have anything to do. Like, you don't have to..." She trailed off.

Luckily though, he smiled and agreed graciously. "I'd love to."

The next hour and a half was spent moving furniture to the edges of the room, setting up a drinks table, and moving all of their more valuable items to under Jemima's bed so nothing would get broken. She felt very exposed when he entered her room. It was as if he was seeing another side of her, a deeper side that she wasn't ready for him to see. Her room wasn't exactly decorated crazily or anything, but she had everything she loved in there. Her double four poster bed, her cream fluffy rug, her shelves full of her favourite books and DVD's. He stopped to look at a photo that stood on her dressing table.

"This is nice." He spoke. Jemima spied his face in the mirror which sat on top of the table, he was smiling as he picked the frame up in his hands. It was a small collage of photo's that Victoria had made her for her birthday. There were only a few pictures in it, but she had definitely chosen the best ones. There were some of the day they moved into the flat, both holding boxes and pulling funny faces at the camera, one from a night out where they were both actually dressed nicely for once, some with the boys downstairs on their famous movie nights, all surrounded by popcorn. The biggest photo in the middle was of Victoria, Jemima and Cettie all hugging and smiling in the sun in some park they visited one time. All great memories. Jemima smiled fondly as she joined Munkustrap at the table.

"Victoria made it for me. She's the best."

"You guys are close then?" He looked down at her, the frame still in his hands.

"She's like my sister. Cettie too. Well, I assume that's what having a sister is like, I never actually had a real one, but they're good substitutes." She looked up to join his gaze.

"It seems like she thinks highly of you." He pointed to the cheesy words that were scrawled in sharpie on the frame. They read: ' _Jemmi, happy birthday! You are the bestest friend a girl could ask for. Thank you for everything. Love, Vic x_ '.

Jemima waved her hand nonchalantly. "She's a big softie, what do you expect?" But it was true. Sometimes her wacky roommates held her on this sort of pedestal when it came to dealing with their problems, mostly because she was the only one who would actually sit down and listen to them. "They just like to come to me with their problems sometimes. I suppose I'm rather level headed." She walked to the window to look out at the sky. It was still bright out, despite it being 7pm and she could see the sun poking out from behind the tall buildings.

"You're a good friend." Munk said, setting the photo frame down in its original place. She wasn't sure whether he meant it as a question or a statement, but she had little time to care about it as she felt him walk up behind her. She was still stood facing the window. She felt his breath on the back of her neck and she tightened her grip on the windowsill.

"Well, I don't know about that." Her heart felt like it would explode right out of her chest at any second. She was sure he could hear her heavy breathing but he didn't move an inch. He just stood there, right behind her, almost touching. Jemima wasn't sure how long they stood there, for her it felt like minutes.

"I think you're a great." He breathed into her ear. Not the most romantic of statements but it was still enough to make Jemima's knees weak. _Get it together, girl,_ she thought.

"You barely know me." She turned around, tilting her head upwards to look at him, defiantly.

"I want to." And then his hand was moving to touch hers, still gripping onto the windowsill. Jemima was confused. was the guy who was completely awkward around her just a few days ago, but now he was a few inches away from her, looking as if he might kiss her any second. She wanted him to. She wanted him to kiss her even though she would usually find this sort of affection gross and lame. His fingers brushed her own and she had no idea what to say next. She _always_ had something to say. Whether it was the right time to speak or not, she would always be able to add something to the conversation, and yet she was silenced by a single touch of his hand.

That was when she heard the front door open. "Wow, Jem! This looks great!" Munkustrap leaped backwards away from her and she wanted to physically slap Cettie who was now obviously looking through the alcohol selection, the bottles clinking loudly. Jemima looked at Munkustrap who eyes were wide with guilt, as if he was a child and had just been caught stealing the last biscuit from the tin.

"Sorry." Was all he said as he stood awkwardly against the wall opposite her.

"Don't be." She replied, trying as hard as she could to show that she meant it. That she liked it and that she liked him and wasn't mad. She smiled. And _he_ smiled _._ He smiled an actual smile, toothy and beautiful. He seemed as if he was actually at ease around her for the first time. She had seen glimpses of the relaxed Munkustrap a few times when they were joking around, but this was different. Jemima couldn't contain her grin. Soon they were both laughing, as if they both shared a joke that no one else knew about.

"I'll see you at the party still, wont I?" He asked in between gasps of laughter.

"You definitely will." Jemima answered. He would see her even if he hadn't wanted to, she thought to herself just after he left, smiling as she collapsed into the sofa. Flirting really took it out of her. She kept replaying his words in her head as she made the finishing touches to the flat with Cettie. The blonde chattering non-stop about work that day but Jemima wasn't listening. She was too busy thinking about the tall, dark man three doors down.


	8. The Feud

CHAPTER 8

"Please be careful!" Victoria called over to Quaxo who stood on the sofa, drink in hand, as he jumped up and down to the music. He poked his tongue out at her before stumbling slightly and tumbling down into a crumpled mess, spilling the contents of the glass down his white shirt.

"Shit!" He slurred as he tried his hardest to wipe at the stain with fumbling hands. Victoria rolled her eyes and just thanked god that he didn't spill it on any of the furniture. Bystanders laughed as the dark haired man rose to his feet only to fall back down again and begin giggling hysterically.

"And so the Irish guy says, "I was so busy eating potatoes and listening to U2, I forgot to get drunk!" Victoria was snapped back into her original conversation. She let out a forced laugh when she noticed others around her chuckling at Tumblebrutus' joke but she really hadn't been listening. Frankly, her mind had been elsewhere all night. She had been scanning the room for Plato for a while now and hadn't seen him once. She knew he'd turn up at some point but she was growing impatient and the gin she had consumed earlier would only make her confident for so long. She tugged at her jumper sleeve, her hands unable to stay still.

"Are you okay, Vic?" Pouncival touched her forearm, bringing her back down to earth once again. Her fingers stopped fiddling and she looked to him, her eyes still wide.

"What? Oh, yeah I'm fine, I'm fine." She smiled at her friend, his faded brown eyes now clouded with concern. She obviously looked like she was wasted. She had done some shots with Cettie earlier for good luck, but she wanted to be at least coherent when she went to talk to Plato. She decided that now was a perfect time to 'make a move' so to speak, as the pair were obviously interested in one another but neither had the guts to do anything about it. "Do you know where Plato is?"

Pouncival's arm dropped to his side. "No idea. Said he'd be a bit late I think." He took a swig from his beer bottle and grimaced. Victoria knew that Pounce didn't like to drink but he did like to look cool in front of his friends, as they were the type to make fun of that sort of thing. In their minds beer was the manliest thing of all, even though they all took ballet classes and they had no problems with that. Victoria rolled her eyes.

"You don't have to drink that, you know." She leaned in closer to him so Tumble wouldn't hear. She looked to him and he seemed to have his hands full entertaining a crowd of people with his awful (and slightly racist) jokes. But still, she knew that Pounce would kill her if the boys overheard.

"Yes I do." He took another gulp and shuddered this time. "Why do people like this stuff? I've had out of date milk that tastes better than this." Victoria wrinkled her nose but giggled nonetheless. Pounce smiled at her, glad he was making her laugh as she had been distracted all night. Just then the front door opened and a stream of people walked through, all decked in their finest clothes and with bottles of various drinks in their hands. Among them was a tall, auburn haired man whose head stuck out just a bit more than the rest. Victoria straightened her back immediately and her heart began to beat faster.

"Oh God." She mumbled, her eyes darting to the floor.

"What is it?" Pounce looked past her at Plato who had just entered and his face fell slightly. "Oh."

"What do I do?" Victoria grabbed Pouncival's arm tightly and looked at him with wild eyes. "I need more gin."

He looked fondly at her hand on his arm and steadied her. "Look at me, Vic." She obeyed. "Calm the hell down, you crazy. Just talk to him." The words tasted bitter in his mouth but he said them anyway. Victoria nodded a little too frantically and Pouncival chuckled. "I'd also keep the head movements to a minimum, you look like you're about to go on some sort of rampage."

"Right. Talk to him. No fast head movements. Got it." She ran through the list, her confidence growing slightly from her friend's calm words and his hand on hers. She scanned the room to find him once again and locked eyes with him. He stood by the drinks table, holding a red plastic cup and looking amazing as usual. Victoria's head spun slightly from the gin but mostly from her anxiety. "Maybe I should have some vodka instead?" She began to turn away.

"Vic." Pouncival scolded. "Go." He gave one last half-hearted smile as she began to walk over. On a normal day Victoria would have stayed to talk to her friend, with the defeated look on his face she could tell something was wrong. But today wasn't a normal day and she had bigger fish to fry. She breathed deeply enough to calm her down but not too deep that she looked like a psychotic killer.

"Hey, Plato." He was facing the other way now, and so she tapped him on the shoulder. As he turned he smiled down on her, his teeth gleaming and his eyes friendly.

"Oh, hi _Victoria_." An unfriendly voice returned her greeting. A tall, slender woman moved out from behind Plato and smiled bitterly at her, her eyes cold. Victoria had been so dead set on talking to Plato that she hadn't even seen Cassandra standing next to him. "Lovely place you've got here. Very… quaint." The taller woman wrinkled her nose slightly as if there was a bad smell in the air.

"Hello Cassandra." Victoria deadpanned, her face twisting into a sour expression. "Didn't realise you were invited." She didn't necessarily mean to sound rude but she didn't want to sound inviting either. Cassandra smirked slightly, moving closer to Plato who looked as awkward as he probably felt. Victoria felt bad for him but she didn't want Cassandra to walk all over her like she usually did. She would have time to talk to him later.

"Your charming little roommate invited me. Sally, I think?"

"Cettie." Victoria corrected. Victoria made a mental note to _kill_ her later.

"Whatever. I was just talking to Plato here about the show." She placed her hand on his arm and kept it there, staring Victoria right in the eye. The blonde's blood boiled.

"I see. Sorry about the little mishap in the audition the other day. It must have been embarrassing for you." Victoria smiled a falsely sweet smile and Cassandra turned pink.

"Grizabella had no idea what she was talking about, daft old bat." She rolled her greeny-brown eyes and regained her composure. "That's my part."

Victoria laughed slightly. Cassandra was so blinded by her own self-love that she couldn't even take direction from others who were clearly superior to her. Victoria had had enough – she wasn't going to stand here and have an argument with her. She had had enough gin tonight to have the confidence to turn to Plato and say: "Do you wanna go somewhere and talk, Plato?"

He looked taken aback. His cheeks turned pink and his mouth opened in a smile that could have easily been a grimace. "Uh, Victoria… I, Uh-"

"Not trying to steal my man are we, Vic?" Cassandra placed her arm around Plato protectively, leaving Victoria staring back at them both. The picture made her stomach turn and she felt sick rising in her throat. It suddenly all made sense. This was why he never made any advances on her, why he barely even spoke to her. This was probably why Cassandra hated her so much. She'd put it all down to his shyness and her general bitchiness but this was obviously the reason. She suddenly felt very small in comparison to the two. The brunette was nearly as tall at Plato, decked out in a sleek brown dress that hugged her petite dancers figure. Plato wore a crisp blue shirt and suit trousers. They looked like a couple, a smart and sophisticated couple and she looked like a petty child. Victoria stood looking up at them in her blue jeans and cropped pink jumper, her mouth slightly agape. She hadn't even bothered wearing much make up. She probably looked like a little kid desperate for attention.

"Are you two…? I mean – are you a couple?"

"Yes, honey." Cassandra sneered. "So you _were_ trying to steal my man!" She looked to Plato and laughed. He smiled slightly, but his eyes were looking apologetically at Victoria.

"No," Victoria stumbled backwards slightly, tripping over a stray cup and bumping into Jemima who stood behind her. "I wasn't!"

"Ouch. What the hell?" Jemima spun round, an angry look on her face before softening when she saw her friends distressed eyes and flushed cheeks. "Are you okay?"

"I – I –" Was all Victoria could muster up, her eyes starting to fill with tears. She wasn't quite sure why she wanted to cry. Maybe because Cassandra was being so cruel to her or because the guy she had been fawning over for the last year and a half was dating her enemy and maybe she'd had a little too much to drink, but either way she could feel the tears about to spill over.

"Victoria's been told some harsh truths tonight, my dear." Cassandra looked to Jemima with a mocking look in her eye. "Frankly, I don't know why she's acting so upset, I mean it's not like Plato would have ever liked a girl who cries at her own party and can't even _dance_."

Victoria snapped. The tears spilled over and ran down her cheeks and before she knew it she had raised her hand and slapped Cassandra right in the face. She backed away, surprised by herself, her hand covering her mouth in shock. Jemima stared at her in disbelief before giggling slightly, biting her lip to stop herself as Cassandra stared at her. The tall brunette looked as if she had just been attacked by a madman - her face went bright red and she stepped closer to Victoria, leaning down to stare her square in the face.

"You're going to regret that." She breathed before storming out of the room and into the hall.

Plato stood dumbfounded, having not said much at all during this whole encounter. He and Victoria locked eyes for a moment and for a second she thought he might stay with her, but he just furrowed his brow and followed in the direction Cassandra had gone. She looked after him, confused as to what just happened.

Victoria then shared a look with Jemima for a moment. She couldn't believe she'd just slapped someone. She's never even had a proper argument with someone before, let alone physically maimed them.

"That was _amazing._ " Jemima blinked at her blonde friend before falling into fits of laughter. Victoria noticed the crowd that had gathered around and who now were also laughing and cheering for her. Quaxo stood with a new drink in his hand, his shirt still stained, with a wide grin on his face. "All hail Queen Victoria!" He cried into the mass of people who began whooping and clapping, all impressed with her for standing up to the Ice Queen that was Cassandra.

She noticed Pouncival not far away with an unreadable expression on his face. He walked up to her and folded his arms round her.

"Do you need a drink?" He asked, looking down at her with a smile now plastered on his face.

"Yes please." She replied, suddenly laughing along with everyone else. She felt all her anger fizzle away and replace itself with happiness. Her friends all stood around her and the party was still in full swing, with most people not even noticing the kafuffle that had just occurred. She let Pouncival pour her another drink, keeping his arm firmly round her shoulders and she giggled with the others about her new found anger. Plato? Plato who?


	9. The Revelation

It was her seventh shot and she could definitely feel it. The room had turned into a teal coloured haze and the people around her were suddenly just blurry figures floating about in space.

"Cettie, are you okay?" It was Jemima (as far as Cettie could tell). Her face was clouded with concern, but in retrospect, it could have just been clouded to Cettie from all the whiskey she had downed. "How much have you had to drink?"

"Tequila is great!" Was all Cettie could spit out, giggling as she lost her footing slightly, knocking into her freckled friend beside her. Electra grinned back at her. She had probably had the same amount to drink as Cettie, but could obviously handle it a lot better than her blonde mess of a friend and so tried to reassure Jemima who was gnawing at her lip anxiously.

"I'll take care of her, don't worry." Electra placed a hand on the smaller girls shoulder. "Seriously, she'll be fine. Go and have fun! I'm at least 99 percent sure that that guy over there is checking you out." She pointed to a tall dark haired man who stood across the room from them. Jemima looked at him before blushing and looking back.

"Okay, please make sure she doesn't drink anything else?" Jemima asked as Cettie began inspecting the drinks table in front of her for something that she had yet to drink.

Electra took hold of her friends hand and yanked her away from the table slightly. "Got it."

"Ouch! Hey, that wasn't very nice." Cettie tried to look stern but as she placed her hand on her hip, she looked more like a pouting child.

Jemima laughed slightly before bounding over to the man Electra had pointed out. Electra turned to Cettie who was giggling again. "You okay there, Cettie?"

"Never better!" She slurred. "Hey this is my favourite song! Let's dance!" She grabbed Electra's hand before pulling her to the centre of the cramped room. She began to sway her hips in time with the beat, her moves becoming more and more embarrassing as she tried to coax her friend to dance along with her. Electra giggled at Cettie's awful dancing and soon enough she joined her, both of them demonstrating their best dad dance moves.

The two danced for 5 songs straight, laughing and trying their hardest to embarrass themselves in front of everyone. When a slow song came on they pretended they were a married couple and they slow danced, twirling each other round into various objects and people.

"Sorry!" Cettie called to a stranger she had just head-butted before rushing back to her friend's arms. She was exhausted. She rested her head on her friends shoulder as they swayed slightly to a cheesy 80's pop ballad that was probably from Victoria's iPod. Her hands were folded around her friend's waist despite her being all sweaty and gross, and Electra's hands rested around Cettie's neck.

Cettie couldn't believe she'd let Tugger psych her out earlier in the week. How could he even get in the way of her friendship with Electra? She mentally reminded herself never to put a guy before her. Chicks before dicks, or whatever. She thought of his perfect hair and his chiselled features and felt nothing. He was just her annoying neighbour from down the hall who sometimes came round to use their microwave or borrow some eggs. He was nothing. Electra was everything. She knew Cettie so well it was quite scary.

She was able to tell whether she was happy or sad just from the way she said hello, and she always knew when something was up. She was so thankful to have someone there who understood her completely. She knew she had Jemima and Victoria who were always there to help, but somehow Electra was different. There was a different energy about her that drew Cettie to her. She was always shy and mysterious until recently but ever since she opened up, she had almost changed her life in a way. And as horrifically cliché it was, Cettie loved it. There was something about those freckles and those laugh lines around her eyes that crinkled up when she smiled and her goofy teeth and her melodic laugh. Her dark eyes made Cettie smile, and even though they contrasted with her own bright ones, they somehow always seemed full of life. She was beautiful.

Cettie stood up properly, her hands still on Electra's waist. She looked into her eyes and froze. _Oh my god,_ Cettie thought. Suddenly her hands felt odd and she was very aware that she was pressed against her in a room full of people. She backed away slightly, declaring that she felt weird and needed air, before walking out into the hall, leaving Electra standing on her own, confused.

Cettie paced back and forth down the dingy, narrow hall of her apartment building. She had obviously drunk way too much. There was no way this was real. She hadn't just realised that she was in love with her best friend. It was the tequila. The alcohol had just gone to her head. Obviously. _Obviously._ What was not so obvious was the small voice in her voice telling her to go back in there and kiss her. Her small friend who was probably confused and rather offended at Cettie's swift exit.

But as Cettie went to grab hold of the door handle, she thought of all those people in the room. She couldn't just go up to a girl and kiss her. She would be mocked. Ridiculed. People don't understand gay people. Hell, even she didn't fully understand them. And she was one. _Jesus._ Was she gay? Just as this thought occurred to her, she felt a sudden wave of nausea hit her. Her hands flew to her mouth as she ran for the fire exit situated at the end of the hall that led to the rooftop.

She took several deep breaths, doubled over with her hands on her knees. Her eyes were squeezed shut.

"Well, they were right. The view is _much_ better up here."

Cettie snapped upright, her eyes wildly searching the dark rooftop for the intruder.

"Didn't mean to startle you, love." Tugger stepped into one of the floodlights that adorned the cemented floors. His usual smirk was plastered on his face but his eyes were clouded over with a look that Cettie just couldn't read in her drunken state. His outfits were always impeccable, but he seemed extra sharp tonight. However, to Cettie, this just made him seem jagged and pointy, as if all his edges were sharpened and threatening.

"What do you want, Tugger?" She spat out, taking a few steps back so that she was pressed against a wall. An attempt to keep her upright. She realised she sounded hateful and childish but she didn't care. Also she couldn't stop. She had so much hate for this man she barely knew.

"Nothing, nothing. Just came to see if you were alright, you know? I'm being gentlemanly, I've heard it's popular with your kind." He winked at her, causing her to grimace. Something that she'd usually hide from him, but her head was too foggy for her to stop herself. "Getting the cold shoulder, am I? I get it, I get it. Some girls can't handle everything I have to offer, but you'll come around, I'm sure of it."

Just as he said this, his arm snaked around her waist. All Cettie could think to do was push him away but his feet remained planted to the ground and the main part of her force sent her backwards into the ground. She hit the ground with a thud and slid 2 feet away into the darkness, a sharp pain now throbbing in her left hip.

"Oh, Jesus. Cettie, are you alright?" Tugger reached out a hand for Cettie but she scrambled away, still on the floor.

"Don't touch me, Tugger. I know you. I know you're a flirt, just please leave me alone… And leave Electra alone. We were better off before we met you and you've come here and messed it all up!" She knew how stupid she must sound. Her arms were flailing around in what was supposed to be a menacing way but just made her look clinically insane… And very drunk. Cettie could feel the vomit rising in her throat but she kept speaking. "Stop trying to take her from me! She is mine. _Mine._ I love her!"

"You love her?" Tugger had an unreadable expression – once again Cettie could not tell if it was her inhibited state that made it so. "Like you… _love_ her?"

Oh God. She'd really done it now. Only mere minutes after she'd realised it herself, she'd let Tugger in on the situation too.

"No."

"You do! It's so obvious now! God, you follow her around like a lost puppy!"

"No I don't! Stop it, Tugger, this is isn't funny! Just shut up, _shut up!_ "

Tugger began to laugh a throaty laugh. "Oh, wow. It all makes sense now!"

Wearily, Cettie gave up trying to shout at Tugger. "Do you think she knows?" Cettie began to panic. Her hands rose to her face and she became aware that they were shaking. "Oh God. I'm going to be sick. This is awful. So awful. She's gunna laugh in my face. Everyone is. I feel sick."

"Whoa, whoa, there Cettie. Calm down." Tugger crouched down beside her, keeping some distance between them but coming close enough that his face was no longer blurry. It was clouded with concern. "No one is going to laugh at you. Everyone loves you. Including Electra – trust me."

Cettie sighed, looking up at the blonde's built up figure. "Why can't I be normal and just find you attractive? Maybe I should just try and forget it, you know? Become one of those people who are closeted for life."

"No." Tugger replied forcefully. "That is no way to live, Cettie, trust me. You have to accept it."

"Oh, don't act all self-righteous with me. You're the biggest slut I know, why am I even taking relationship advice from you?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I'm not exactly the poster child for healthy relationships… But I do understand, Cettie, _I do_." His eyes were wider now, as if he was trying to telepathically communicate some secret code to her just through sight.

"Wait, what? You understand? _How_ could you possibly understand unless you were – wait? You mean you're…?" Cettie shook her head. "That isn't funny, Tugger. I know you aren't really. Don't make fun of me."

"I know it sounds awful but I really wish I was just making fun of you." He sat down on the floor next to her and looked up at the sky. "I wish this was all one big joke and we could just start making out now and end all this shittiness. I would like nothing more." Cettie looked at him with a confused expression. What was he trying to say? He was the biggest flirt that she knew, he _loved_ women. Why would he pursue so many of them if he wasn't interested?

As if he had read her mind he looked at her in her eyes. "It's stupid, I know. I just come from a family that doesn't accept that kind of thing. I don't know how anyone would react to it, not even Munk." He paused, his head falling slightly. "I guess I just distract myself with women to, I don't know, try and force myself to be straight."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

Tugger laughed a laugh that wasn't happy in the slightest. "Honestly, I'm not too sure either. I'm not even drunk. I guess I've just never really met someone who was like me. I've had it on my chest for a long, long time."

The two were silent for a moment, both looking up at the black starless sky. The sounds of the city still infiltrated the rooftop and Cettie could vaguely hear two people having a lovers quarrel down on the street below them.

"So… what now?" Was all she could muster.

"I say," He stood up and extended his hand out to her. "We get you some water and get you into bed."

"Really, Tugger? How can you be so calm? We've basically just come out to each other and you're acting like nothing happened."

"Look, getting stressed out now will only make things worse. You'll get all paranoid and you'll probably go in there and say or do something you regret. There's no reason to stress or be sad about this when it's natural."

"If it's so natural then why am I the only person who knows about you?" Cettie asked, probably a little too accusingly.

"If I thought someone loved me back, then I'd be more than willing to tell people. I don't think Quaxo sees me that way. If I thought my friends and family would accept it gladly then sure, I'd shout it out from this roof top. But that's not my situation. It could, however, be yours. Now come on, let's get you to bed."

"But everyone's still at my flat, I wouldn't find a moment of peace with that lot dancing around for hours."

"You can stay at mine. I promise I won't try anything!" He laughed, and after a few moments she took his hand, wobbling slightly as she stood up. "I'll sleep on the sofa. Come on."

"I'm sorry, Tugger. It really must be awful."

"Hey, don't worry. I'm sorry for being such a wanker to you. I go a bit overboard with the whole straight guy thing."

Cettie let Tugger escort her down from the roof to his flat and within moments of lying down on his ratty old sheets she fell asleep dreaming of holding Electra's hand.


	10. The Showdown

"You were _Annie_?! Now _that_ is badass." Munkustrap laughed. He and Jemima sat on the sofa which was now slightly stained from various drinks being spilled on it. Jemima knew Victoria would go crazy tomorrow but she seemed to be having a good time drunkenly dancing with Pouncival now.

"Hey, she is small but mighty! As am I." She gestured to herself dramatically.

"Okay, I confess. I was the Artful Dodger. Cockney accent and all." He put his hands up in surrender.

"No way! Hey, aren't you a bit too tall to play him?" She winked.

"Contrary to popular belief, I haven't actually always been over 6 foot."

Munkustrap laughed and Jemima gawked at his smile as nonchalantly as she could but it was becoming increasingly difficult as the night went on. They'd been talking for at least an hour straight. Neither had left the others side and Jemima felt like she was in her own personal heaven. His smile was amazing. It was infectious and wonderful and she'd definitely had too much to drink.

"Lies." She cried, giggling herself. He looked down at her fondly, then without warning his eyes darkened. His attention locked onto something just above her head and his gaze stayed trained behind her at the crowd of people who just entered the room.

"Demeter, Bomba!" She heard Victoria shout over the music. "You came!"

Munkustrap's eyes were glued to the younger of the sisters and her tight black dress.

"Do you know them?" She asked, clicking him out of his daydream. Her wide eyes must have seemed panicked.

"Um-"

Just then, Victoria came bounding over with the sisters in tow.

"This is Munkustrap! And obviously you both know Jem from class." She grinned her tipsy grin, looking between both parties.

"Munk?" Demeter stared at him with an awkward smile. "Oh my gosh, how are you?"

"I- um… I'm okay. I'm great actually. Great." He said, his voice squeaky and uneven. His eyes didn't leave hers.

A few moments passed before Bomba took a hold of Victoria and asked her to go and get a drink with her so Demeter and Munkustrap could catch up. It took Jemima a second to realise that this invitation had extended to her as well. She slowly rose to her feet and Demeter took her place on the sofa, their knees touching as she began to talk animatedly to him about how long it had been. Munkustrap only flicked his eyes to Jemima's for a brief moment to smile before he returned his gaze to the beautiful woman in front of him. It wasn't the beautiful smile like before, it was uneasy and fleeting.

"What was that about?" She asked Bomba once they were at the drinks table. She couldn't help but look over to the couple with a look she assumed was full of jealousy.

"What?" She began pouring herself a glass of red wine. "Oh right, they used to date. It was a pretty recent thing actually. Less than a year ago. They were sweet together but I don't think she liked him that much."

Jemima's head spun and Victoria gave her a concerned look. "Oh." Was all she could bring herself to say. They used to date. Munkustrap dated Demeter, the gorgeous and refined dancer who was at least ten times as beautiful as she was. Her stomach felt like it was going to drop right out of her, she felt so small. So _young_. Demeter had a good 8 years on Jemima and for the first time since she had met him, Munkustrap seemed old too. She'd never asked but he must have been at least 5 or 6 years older than her, which made her stomach squirm. She must seem so young and naïve to him. She was very aware of her short height and her wide and innocent face, she literally looked about 5 years old.

"Now, miss Victoria! Let's dance!" Bomba had chugged her glass of wine in record time and now held her hand out to Victoria who giggled and took it gladly.

"You sure you're okay, Jem? Do you wanna dance?" Victoria asked. Her face was clouded with worry.

Jemima tried to laugh. "No, it's cool. You go ahead, I'm going to get another drink." She lifted her empty glass.

"Well, okay. Shout if you need anything." And then they were gone, leaving Jemima to stare at Demeter's hand on Munkustrap's knee.

An hour passed and Jemima tried to distract herself by taking care of a very drunk Quaxo.

"Come on, now. Lie down here." She cooed as she lay him down on her bed.

"I feel fine, Vic! Really I do!" Quaxo slurred. Despite this, he rolled onto his side and wrapped the sheets around himself.

"No you don't, honey. My name is Jemima. Now get some sleep, okay?"

Quaxo responded with a loud burp and Jemima snorted with laughter. _Gross_.

As she entered back into the party, she noticed Munkustrap standing by one of the kitchen counters, drink in his hand. He was alone.

After a few minutes loitering in her bedroom doorway, she mustered up enough courage to talk to him, despite all her embarrassment and insecurity. She couldn't believe she's believed that he liked her. He'd made it seem that way in her mind. She remembered their encounter in her room, his closeness, the feeling of his breath on her skin.

"Hey stranger." She smiled a small smile as she walked towards him.

"Oh hey." He took a swig of his beer. "Where did you go?"

"Had to put my child to bed." She chuckled before correcting herself after seeing the look on Munkustrap's face. "Oh no, I meant Quaxo. He's a drunken mess."

"Oh, right." He laughed. "Got a bit scared there for a second."

Jemima laughed. A moment passed. She bit her lip. She was going to bring it up, wasn't she? She could feel the word vomit forcing its way up her throat. She was unable to stop herself from bringing up the elephant in the room.

"So, what did you talk to Demeter about? I didn't know you knew her."

Munkustrap looked like he was in pain. His head lowered and his voice became quiet. "Oh, it was nothing. Nothing at all."

"Bomba told me you two went out?" She couldn't help but say it. Only after she had did she realise how petty it sounded. Like a petulant child.

"Um, yeah we did. She ended it."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"Yeah. It's cool."

Jemima stared at him, waiting for him to relax. But he didn't. His shoulders stayed hunched up and his face was clouded with uneasiness. She became infuriated. Wasn't this the guy who a few hours ago had almost kissed her? He told her he thought she was great. Didn't that mean he liked her?

"Look, I'm sorry. I think I should go." He set his unfinished beer on the counter.

"What? Why?" She questioned him, her voice a little too shrill.

"I- uh. It's hard to explain. I'm really sorry. For everything." And with that he turned on his heel and walked into the corridor.

Jemima stood still for a moment. Her brow furrowed and her arms limp at her side. She was beyond confused. She was so sure he liked her. So certain that he wanted to get to know her. That's what he had said, wasn't it?

Before Jemima had time to question it further, she was walking in the direction Munkustrap had left and soon enough she found herself knocking angrily at Munkustrap's door.

His face appeared from behind it a few moments later.

"What the hell, man?" Were the words that came out of her mouth. She expected herself to say something more profound than that but it would do for now. "What is _up_ with you? You are giving me so many mixed messages here and I'm sick of it. I don't understand, one minute you seem to really like me and I'm pretty sure earlier you nearly _kissed_ me and then you do shit like this? Seriously, what the hell?"

He stared down at her for a few moments, a bewildered look on his face. He obviously wasn't used to small crazy girls shouting at him. His ex-girlfriend was a sophisticated beautiful older woman. And Jemima was only 22 years old, unemployed and still at University. It was a silly situation but he _still_ hadn't spoken so she snapped her fingers in front of his face. "Hello? Earth to Munkustrap!"

"I'm sorry."

"Yes, I know that. Care to elaborate?"

He leaned against his door frame and sighed. "I was with Demeter for about a year, okay? I was pretty sure I was in love with her but she really wasn't anything I thought she was. I – I – we grew apart I guess. I was just thrown off by seeing her tonight. That was the first time I've seen her since we broke up. She spent the whole time talking about her new boyfriend."

A moment passed. "Look, that sucks." Jemima replied and mentally slapped herself for that being her only advice to him. "But that doesn't explain all of your erratic behaviour. I'm sorry, I must sound like a silly _child_ or whatever but seriously dude, you give off these vibes that you like me and then a second later you seem uninterested. Like the other night at dinner. One minute we're talking about acting and you ask for this one-on-one session or whatever and then you won't even talk to me. I just don't know what I'm meant to think." Jemima looked down at her feet, embarrassed by her sudden brashness. She felt out of breath, a burning sensation in her lungs that made her dizzy. This only spurred her on. She definitely would not have been able to say this to him sober.

"Jemima… I'm sorry. I do. I like you. I really like you, and I've only known you for a little while. I – It's just you're so young."

"What? I'm not that young. Don't give me that crap!" She stared him in the eye, suddenly filled with a rage she couldn't explain. "I'm 22. I'm an adult."

"And I'm 27!"

"You're acting like I'm still a foetus, Munk. It's not like the age gap between us is even that big! You're just scared." Jemima shook her head. "You're scared because Demeter fucked you up and you don't want it to happen again."

Munkustrap looked down and pinched the bridge of his nose. He said nothing for a while and Jemima's heart started to slowly sink. All her built up sadness began to convert to rage with every second that passed. He looked at her the way people look at people they want. He wanted her and would do nothing about it.

"I'm sorry." He sighed.

"No. Fuck your sorry." And with that Jemima did the most daring thing she'd ever done in her life. She stood up on her tip toes, grabbed his hair in her hands and kissed him. Square on the mouth for a considerable amount of time. So long that he actually snaked his hand around her waist. Her hands were now tangled in his hair at the base of his neck. It took him a moment to fully process what was happening but then Munkustrap joined in with the kiss at full force, holding her body to his. She pulled away slowly so that their faces were inches apart. His face was flushed and his eyes looked fiercely into hers.

"The ball's in your court, _lover boy_. I won't wait forever."

And with that she turned away and headed back to her party, in shock at her actions. She started to laugh a full and throaty laugh.


	11. The Outburst

Victoria could still taste the vodka at the back of her mouth. She could smell it to. Her overwhelming need to vomit awoke her at exactly 7.38am. That, and the small human beside her in bed kicking her shins as she wriggled to get comfy. Jemima had crawled into Victoria's bed at 4am to escape Quaxo's snoring. He had hijacked her own bed due to his inability to hold a drink. Victoria sat up, rubbing her forehead to try and subside the pounding she felt behind her eyes and took a swig of water that rested upon her bedside table. She felt horrendous. More than horrendous – she was pretty sure she was dead.

The night overall had been a success and she had danced for at least 4 hours straight with Bomba and Pouncival. Her feet were sorer than they would be after a day of dancing at work. She couldn't, however, get the sour memory of Plato out of her head. The way he looked at her just before he fled after Cassandra. He looked _angry_ with her. Like it was her fault his girlfriend was a psychopath or something. The woman obviously had some issues – who else would pick on a girl 3 years her junior just because she felt insecure about her relationship with her boyfriend? Victoria had never even spoken to Cassandra before a week ago and now she was her arch nemesis. All because of some guy who Victoria now realised she barely even knew.

Regardless of their proximity – his apartment being 3 floors down – they had never really… talked. Well not properly anyway. They'd spoken about the weather and about music and stuff but the more she thought about it, the more Victoria realised that she didn't know anything about him. She didn't know his favourite colour or where he grew up or if he had any brothers and sisters. This was an integral part of being in love with someone, she thought. And it was pretty clear now that she had confused love with infatuation.

"No, please don't cut off my hair…" Jemima was writhing in the bed next to her, mumbling in her sleep – a very concerned expression on her face. As to not wake her, Victoria shimmied down to the end of the bed and hopped off onto the wooden floor with a creak.

In the living room, Cettie sat on the sofa, surrounded by blankets and eating a watermelon that she had cut in half straight from the rind with a dessert spoon. She gave her a weak smile as she entered.

"You look as shit as I feel." Cettie announced.

"Thank you. You also look shit." Victoria slumped onto the sofa next to her.

"Goodness me! Her majesty _swore_! Alert the papers! Notify the townspeople!" Cettie cried, a chunk of watermelon still in her mouth.

Victoria winced. "Not so loud. I feel like my head could fall off my body at any moment."

"Watermelon?" Cettie offered her a sizeable pink block on her spoon. Victoria wouldn't usually have taken up this offer but it looked so juicy and refreshing that she found herself letting Cettie feed her like a baby. After a moment, Cettie began to giggle. "This feels weird."

"Shut up and give me more." Victoria frowned at her.

Just then the phone began to ring, which was a rare occurrence in their flat.

"No one ever calls our home phone." Cettie set aside her watermelon onto Victoria's lap and gave her the spoon in order to search for the phone. After 7 rings, Cettie, still wrapped in blankets, answered. "Hello?"

Victoria took another chunk out of the large fruit on her lap and began to chew.

"Vic, it's for you." Cettie held out the phone to her. Victoria looked back at her in panic as she struggled to chomp on the contents of her mouth. She shook her head violently at Cettie who kept holding out the phone to her anyway.

"Hello?" She finally said, her mouth still full.

"Is this Victoria?" Asked a voice at the end of the line.

"Indeed it is." She swallowed her last piece of watermelon.

"This is Grizabella – from the dance school?"

"Oh my gosh, Grizabella, hello, hi, hello. How can I help you?" She was not prepared to be talking to her boss whilst hung over and choking on watermelon.

"Darling, I believe it's how I can help you. After much discussion, we have decided to offer you the role of Odette in Swan Lake."

Victoria almost dropped the phone."What?"

"Your audition was successful, darling." Victoria could hear her slurping her tea on the other end.

"No way! Oh wow – I mean yes please. I didn't mean no, I meant - Are you sure?" Victoria began to mime the words ' _I got the part'_ to Cettie who was giving her a quizzical look.

"I'm glad to hear you accept. I'll make sure Bombalurina tells you more about it on Monday when you return to work. Now I have to go and call some people about costumes."

Victoria bit her lip. "Thank you so much. Sorry, Grizabella, I was just wondering about Cassandra?"

"What do you mean, dear?"

"Well, I was so certain that she would get the part."

"And she would have, if it were not for you, Victoria. You showed us something fresh."

"Well, thank you again." Victoria smiled.

"I'll see you soon, Victoria. Congratulations." And with that, the phone still pressed to her ear, the line went dead and she was gone.

"Oh my god." Victoria dropped the phone on the sofa as the news sunk in. She got the principal role. She had got the biggest part in the show. "I got Odette!" Victoria's hangover seemed to subside as she began screaming and dancing around the room. She waved her arms in the air and jumped up onto the sofa, making it squeak. Cettie joined her, watermelon still in her hand as they then moved to Victoria's room where Jemima still lay snoring.

"Jemi, wake up!" Victoria shook her small friend vigorously by the shoulders whilst Cettie began jumping on the bed like a child.

She grunted in response. "What is it? Can't you see I'm busy dying here?"

"I got Odette! Grizabella just called me and I got Odette!" Victoria shook Jemima again and this time she opened her eyes.

"Oh my god, Vic, that's amazing!" She smiled, sitting up quickly and wincing immediately. "Please note that I am happy for you but I will not be participating in this celebratory dance thing you two have going on right now. Someone make me a cup of tea and then I'll consider it." Jemima gave Victoria a hug that Cettie joined in on before going to boil the kettle.

Victoria had forgotten all about Plato as she ran down the apartment block stairs down to tell her friends about the news.

"Ouch. Fuck." Plato said as Victoria bolted into him in the hallway outside his apartment.

"Oh god, I'm sorry!" She steadied herself as she regained her footing after impact. "Actually I'm glad you're here, guess what? I got Odette! Grizabella just called me." She smiled.

"That's great, Vic." He smiled down at her for a moment before getting out his phone.

"You seem really happy about it." She joked.

"Yeah, well Cassandra won't be too happy about this, I should break it to her easily." He shrugged and punched in a number on his phone.

"Oh." She frowned. The events from the night before came flooding back to her. "How is the ice queen doing?"

"You know, it really wasn't cool what you did last night. You can't just _hit_ people because you're mad at them, Vic."

Victoria's frown deepened. She had honestly thought that Plato would apologise to her for Cassandra's behaviour, but instead he was getting angry at her because of it. She knew that hitting her was wrong and it was so obviously unlike her – she was clearly inhibited - but it's not like she wasn't provoked. It's like he was blind to Cassandra being evil to everyone around her.

"You did hear what she said to me, right?" Victoria questioned.

"Yeah, she gets all crazy like that sometimes. She's actually really insecure – I thought you would have understood that, given your circumstances."

"My circumstances?" Victoria found it hard to believe that Cassandra was in any way insecure.

"You know… Because you're so… You know."

"No I don't _know_ , Plato. Please enlighten me." She had never felt this pissed off. She usually would let all this slide and resign to staring into Plato's eyes whilst he spoke to someone else but not this time. Now she was Odette and he was just some guy who used too much aftershave.

"You're shy, Vic. You avoid talking to anyone and you… I don't know… You seem to fawn over me a lot. I never mentioned it until now because we're friends. It just gets on Cassie's nerves."

Cassie? This was all too much. She felt so stupid. Of course he knew she liked him. And of _course_ the feelings were never reciprocated. She knew she should get out of there but she couldn't. Her feet stayed glued to the floor and her blood felt hot in her veins like she might explode at any moment.

"Well, I'm sorry _Cassie_ had to deal with that. And I'm sorry that I liked you, it must have been so hard to deal with seeing as you never once told me to stop _fawning_ because you had a girlfriend. I bet you hated the attention, right? Must have been just awful." The words fell out of her mouth at rapid speed before she had the time to stop herself. Plato's eyes widened and he opened his mouth as if he had something to say before snapping it shut.

"Hey, Vic!" Pouncival opened the door to the flat and stepped into the hallway. "I thought I heard your voice. I'm surprised you're up so early - it's only midday. Also I believe that you have kidnapped our roommate."

Victoria's eyes snapped to her friends. His scruffy hair looked dishevelled but soft and his toothy smile seemed brighter than ever. He looked handsome.

"I got Odette. I came down here to tell you." Victoria was still riding off her adrenaline fuelled outburst but the sight of him was calming her down.

"That's amazing! I feel so proud, my friend is gunna be a star!" He walked to her and gave her a tight hug, leaving his arm slung over her shoulder as he turned to Plato. "How cool is that, Plato?"

But Plato, bright red, put his phone to his ear and stalked down the hallway and round the corner, out of sight.

"What's his problem?" Pouncival asked.

"Relationship problems." She rolled her eyes. "Hey, do you want to go and get some coffee with me?"

"Oh, sure. Yeah. I'd like that." His smile seemed to get even toothier. And even more handsome.

"Cool, let's go, Mr Grin." She winked at him.

"Hey, shut it, you."

"Has anyone ever told you you're about 70% tooth?" She giggled and he bumped her in the arm, laughing his familiar boisterous laugh.


	12. The Kiss

"Having some trouble?" Cettie moved towards the rowing machine.

It was 15 minutes before closing time as she began to demonstrate how to properly use the equipment for the third time to the elderly man who had a gym membership solely so he could use the pool. It wasn't often you'd see him actually use any of the machines.

"Sorry." He looked embarrassed, peering up at her exasperated expression and began to babble, seemingly flustered. "I'm trying to impress my wife. I feel as if I've lost my shape a bit. I'm not used to using these… things." He motioned to the metal contraption.

Cettie smiled. "That's okay. You just need to get used to it. Maybe you should start off on something a little easier, like the running machine, before you go onto the more advanced stuff."

"That's what the other pretty girl said." He motioned over to Electra who was at the counter, very engrossed with something on her computer screen.

"Oh." Cettie blushed and looked away quickly, suddenly very interested with the floor. She hadn't spoken to Electra since she ran away from her at the party that weekend. Soon after her talk with Tugger, she had passed out in her room and woke up at around 8am the next day and proceeded to eat a whole watermelon. It helped her body recover but she was yet to sort things out with her best friend. She wasn't even sure what she had to sort. She'd been avoiding having a proper talk with her for at least 4 days now.

"Is she your friend?" The man asked. He was a small man with a friendly face and shaky hands he held at his stomach constantly.

"Yeah. She's my best friend, actually."

"Very sweet. She said the same thing. I'll try the running machine next time." He nodded and moved off to the changing rooms on the other side of the big glass doors that lead away from the gym. Electra had been talking about her?

"Hey." Cettie said, walking up to the desk in which Electra was sat behind. She sat down on the surface and allowed her legs to swing over the edge. The gym was basically empty now except a few people who were cooling down and going to shower.

"Hi stranger." She smiled, her eyes flicking away from the screen to look at her. "Where have you been? I feel like I've barely seen you all week."

"Oh, you know, I've been busy." She lied. She felt so weird being so awkward around her. She was so used to being able to say anything around her.

"Okay." She clicked her mouse a few times and then turned away to face her. "What the hell is up with you?"

"What?" Cettie began to panic.

"Why won't you just talk to me? Tell me what's wrong. I can help you." She had a concerned look on her freckled face. Her dark eyes were shining with worry. She could tell she was being difficult and all Cettie could think about was how pretty Electra was. How bewitching her best friend looked even though they'd been working in a sweaty gym all day.

"You can't help, trust me. It's nothing, I promise." She rose from her position and began to walk towards the equipment to begin cleaning up.

"It's not nothing, Cettie. Stop it. Why are you being so weird? You've been acting like this since the party, did I do something wrong?"

Cettie spun around to look at her small friend who had followed her over. She looked so tiny and upset and all she wanted was to walk up to her and wrap her in her arms but instead she hugged her own body, looking at the ground. "You did nothing wrong. You could never do anything wrong. I – It's just me. Something is wrong with me."

The room was empty now, everyone had left and the doors would soon be locked, yet the large room seemed cramped and small.

"What's wrong with you?" Electra took a few step closer to her.

"I don't know." Was all Cettie could muster.

"You don't know?"

"No, I don't."

A few moments passed. Electra gnawed at her lip and looked at Cettie so intensely that she was afraid she might faint.

"Is it because we danced together?"

"What?"

"We danced together at the party. Is it something to do with that?"

Cettie took a step back. "I don't know what you're talking about. No. No, it's not that. Why would it be that? It's just dancing."

"Don't lie to me, Cettie."

"What are you talking about? You sound _crazy._ " Cettie was talking rather loudly now and she was sure she seemed quite insane.

"I felt it too, Cettie." Electra reached out to her but she stepped backward, tripping on a weight that had been discarded on the floor, grabbing onto the elliptical for support. Cettie had no idea what that meant. Did Electra feel the same way she felt? She couldn't say it out loud. She said nothing for a long while.

"You're not going to say anything?" Electra asked.

"I don't know what to say. I feel so weird. I don't understand what I'm feeling." Cettie could feel herself getting emotional which was never good because she was an avid crier.

"Cettie, don't be upset. I get it. I understand." She moved close to her, so close that Cettie could feel her breath.

"No you don't."

"I do."

And Electra kissed her. It was small at first, tentative to see how Cettie would react but when she got over her initial shock, she relaxed into it. Her hands moved around Electra's waist and Electra's got lost in Cettie's thick hair. They continued to do this for a good minute and a half before they came up for breath.

"You get it now?" Electra asked.

All Cettie could do was nod. Her eyes gazing directly into her friends as she remained close to her body, the heat radiating off her and making her every nerve ending tingle.

"I'm pretty certain I love you, Electra."

"I'm pretty certain I love you too."


End file.
